Eco Architect Sarah Susanka recently shared with Inhabitat five fabulous tips for green renovations, and we wanted to introduce her concepts with you in our own way, to help you in your renovation plans. Susanka believes that comfort can majorly influence the sustainability of your living.

Greenfor the earth and your financesis much more worth it in the long run. Heres how it can break down:

1. Re-evaluate your space

Start with the value your home already has, and discover how to work within it. You may confuse needing more space with needing to clear out and create more personalized systems and layouts.

2. Get an energy audit

This can help you identify the areas your home is leaking energyand you can go from there to run it more efficientlyand cheaply. Twenty-percent of carbon emissions come from existing house stock! Lessen your footprint as you plan to renovate.

3. Invest in quality over quantity

While all of those IKEA stackable bookshelves seem awesome at the time, youll be more pleased and proud of your space if it reaches its highest potential. Youll buy less and appreciate more the key pieces youve invested in. (Eames lounge chair and ottoman, were yearningly looking at you.

4. Use light to amplify perspective

If youve ever played around with light placement in your home, then you understand the power of light on an environment. Look to where you can incorporate more natural light, and include reflective surfaces like metals and mirrors to augment the lighting effect.

5. Color is everything

Consider the key piece or area of the room you want to draw the eye towards, and incorporate a bold pop of color. Using color doesnt have to mean making your home into a bohemian circus. Consider the power through which color adds drama, and can be a relatively inexpensive way (painting walls, say) to remake a room.

Tim Peterson
Tim attended the University of Utah, where he studied mass communications. He works in the media as a freelance sports writer and television producer. His hobbies include home improvement, recreation sports, and history studies. He lives with his wife in Salt Lake City.